Page 23 of Embrace

The wine was brought out first with a complementary cup of bottled water. We thanked her and took a generous sip of the wine.

“I don’t want to be emotional, but I’m excited to see what the week brings us. Before our nap, I even asked God to show me a sign we made the right decision when we agreed to do this at the altar,” Suvi’s words caught me off guard.

“Really?”

She nodded. “I’m kind of scared we’ll end like the rest of my relationships. I don’t want to lose you, B. You bring me too much happiness. You make my bad days better. You… You’re my best friend.”

Suvi’s words floored me. I couldn’t form a response as I processed the deep confession she’d stated. Suvi’s sentiment reflected mine. We’ve had a great friendship that was great the way it was. Now, with the thought of adding intimacy and romance to our friendship, we were both a little on edge about expanding and potentially ruining two decades of camaraderie.

“I feel everything you’re saying right now. Can you make me a promise?” I questioned.

“Hmm?”

“Promise me, no matter what happens in this marriage, you’ll always be my best friend.”

Her lip poked out into a pout. “I promise, loser.”

“You gon’ call me loser the rest of our lives?” I inquired.

“Absolutely. You’ll always be my loser.”

I chuckled. “Okay, man.”

The waitress returned with our appetizers. Suvi’s eyes lit up like a candle as she eyed the wings and seasoned fries.

“Come on with the professional critiques.” I encouraged.

She giggled as she took one of the wings and examined it closely. “It’s juicy. It smells delicious. Presentation is okay, but I would have loved a complimentary celery and carrot stick.”

I laughed. “Great initial review.”

We both took our first bite. I had a flat, so I slid the meat off with ease. Suvi had a drum and took a bite that removed half the meat on the bone. We chewed and allowed the flavors to coat our tastebuds. The meat was seasoned well, and the sauce had the right amount of spice. I knew Suvi would love them.

“They’re not better than our secret food truck, but they did a great job seasoning the meat. There’s still a crunch despite the amount of sauce coating each piece,” she explained. She took a bite of the fries. “There’s a nice crunch here, too. I love a good crispy fry.”

“I thought the same thing. Nothing worse than a soggy fry.”

Suvi nodded. “Exactly! Soggy or too greasy. It ruins the experience.”

“I think you made a great point the other day,” I began. “The amount of food we eat together is ridiculous. I need to start paying for a gym membership.”

“There’s a lot of women who said they gain so much weight in a relationship because food is a love language,” she explained.

“It is.”

She grinned. We cleaned the appetizer plate. While we waited for entrees, the mixed drinks we ordered arrived in large pitchers.

“Nah that’s straight liquor,”I stated after I took a sip of the first drink.

“It’s so damn strong! Oh my goodness,” Suvi commented. She’d tasted the same one as me. “I see why they call it The Ripper.”

“You’re a lightweight when it comes to strong liquor. You should chill on this one.” She was never good at being told what to do. As soon as her eyes met mine, I knew I was in for an earful.

“What the fuck did you just say to me, loser?”

“Look, I’m not trying to carry your ass out of here,” I explained.

“You better ask them for a wheelchair or something then. We’re finishing these drinks and we’re going to have a great time doing it, okay?”

---